Bear Tracks - Curtis Chandler

posted Apr 25, 2013, 10:56 AM by Tahoma Football

In our weekly "Bear Tracks" feature, we catch up with a Tahoma Football alumnus and find out what they are doing after graduation.

From 2004 to 2006, Tahoma football had one of the most successful runs in school history, finishing first in the SPSL North all three years. As tight end for both the 2004 and 2005 teams, Curtis Chandler played a key role in an offense that averaged over 200 yards rushing, almost 300 yards of total offense, and over 31 points per game.

In addition to playing football, though, Chandler was a member of the advanced video productions team for the school. He and two other Tahoma students took 3rd place in a regional film festival, and he was part of both the creation and production of the Legacy trilogy - a three-part documentary on Tahoma football and its impact on the community.

Now, seven years after graduating, Chandler works in marketing for a construction company. In addition to his day job, Chandler runs a podcast called Clinically Inane and is a published concert photographer. His time at Tahoma helped prepare him for success in his chosen fields. “I'm extremely thankful for my education from Tahoma. Without it I wouldn't have survived at university and beyond. It helped me be better prepared for stepping outside of my comfort zone and trying to better myself as a whole.”

Of the many things he learned from football, Chandler says that teamwork was his most important takeaway. “In my time playing football at Tahoma I learned to be inclusive of as many people as I possibly could, no matter what clique to which people thought they belonged. We were taught that we're all part of a team that work hard and work together to better ourselves and everyone around us.”

Chandler’s advice to current Bears is simple: “Everyone says, ‘enjoy it, it goes fast,’ which is entirely true. Just remember the lessons you learned as being part of a team striving for something and take that forward in your life. Take the best parts of you and the people you surround yourself with in order to make something great. It'll work and everyone will be the better off for it.”